The school was founded in 1894 originally as a senior secondary or Academy, before the abolition of the two-tier system of junior and senior secondaries. Today the institution is a non-denominationalcomprehensive school. Originally, the grand red sandstone building located on Eastmuir Street was thought to be "too grand" for the tiny village of Shettleston, which at the time was separate from Glasgow. The roll of the school quickly grew over the years, and required the construction of an annexe building in 1901, which housed primary education until Eastbank Primary School gained its independence from the Academy in 1969 following the construction of its own dedicated building on nearby Gartocher Road. Although now operationally separate, the two institutions retain their affiliation, sharing the same badge, colours and motto; the primary school being one of Eastbank Academy's five feeder primaries. The original 1894 building grew increasingly inadequate over the decades, with practical departments being scattered across a series of pre-fabricated buildings on the Amulree Street side of the school campus. As part of the GEAR initiative, a brand new building was constructed and opened in 1986. At the time state-of-the-art, the 1986 Eastbank Academy building was noted for its extensive use of open plan teaching areas for science and practical subjects. The old 1894 building was extended, refurbished and redeveloped in 1989 into a home for John Wheatley College, whilst the 1901 Annexe building was acquired by Greater Glasgow Health Board in 1995. Consolidation of Glasgow's secondary school portfolio in the late 1990s led to the former John Street secondary being closed, and Eastbank's catchment area increased once again. The 1986 building was once again too small, and required yet another new building which opened in 2002. Following John Wheatley College's move to a new purpose built campus in the Haghill area in 2007, the original 1894 building of Eastbank Academy is now used by other community organisations.
Motto
The school's motto, Splendeat Lux, may have been a contraction of the Latin phrase Splendeat Lux Vestra which, when taken from the Sermon on the Mount, translates as "Let your light shine."
